Emilie and the Sky World by Martha Wells
Publisher: Strange Chemistry
Length: 336 pages
Genera: Science Fiction
Subjects: Middle Grade, Adventure, Steampunk
How I obtained the book: Netgalley, eARC
Rating: ✭✭✭✭
When Emilie and Daniel arrive in Silk Harbor, Professor Abindon, an old colleague of the Marlendes, warns them that she’s observed something strange and potentially deadly in the sky, a disruption in an upper air aether current. But as the Marlendes investigate further, they realize it’s a ship from another aetheric plane. It may be just a friendly explorer, or something far more sinister, but they will have to take an airship into the dangerous air currents to find out.
Emilie joins the expedition and finds herself deep in personal entanglements, with an angry uncle, an interfering brother, and an estranged mother to worry about as well as a lost family of explorers, the strange landscapes of the upper air, and the deadly menace that inhabits the sky world.
The Emilie series embodies all your childhood imagination and excitement about the unknown and supernatural and compiles it all into two nice and neat little books.
It’s really amazing how well Martha Wells can just take all these emotions and somehow turn them into books and not just any book but incredibly enjoyable and good books!
Emilie and the Sky World starts off almost exactly where the last Emilie book ended. It wasn’t the best start but within the first twenty percent, the book picks up quickly when Emilie and co. go off on another exciting adventure.
Practically all the problems that I had with the last Emilie book were resolved in this book, much to my great delight.
The character relationships, which have always been sweet, got almost even sweeter. This Emilie book seems to focus a lot more on familial relationships – daughter and father; mother and daughter; brother and sister.
The relationship between Emilie and her sibling reminded me a lot of my relationship with my own sibling. Slightly antagonistic but at the heart of it, we do love each other. I think a lot of kids will associate with Emilie and her kid brother.
The minor characters added another dimension to the book and all of them made a nice addition to the story. I don’t know what is it about her about I just adore Ms. Marlende. She’s such a strong character and a wonderful mentor for Emilie.
The world is just as beautifully constructed as in the first installment. While not as ‘out-of-this-world’ and fantastical as the Hollow World, the ‘Sky World’ is charming and wonderful in its own way. From the flora to the fauna (and everything in between), Wells proves yet again her skill in creating lovable and unique worlds.
Emilie and the Sky World is a delightful installment to the Emilie series. I enjoyed the first book a bit more but it’s obvious that Wells’ skill in writing definitely improved. The characters are more defined, the relationships more substantial, and the story is better paced. I definitely recommend both Emilie and the Sky World and Emilie and the Hollow World.
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